by Tigertalez
Kace’s southern accent identified him as the flirty troublemaker. “Wouldn’t miss your party if my life depended on it. Was gettin’ bored where I was.”
Around the front of the van came a tall swimmer’s built strawberry blond man who stood shorter than the other three at about six foot. Alphy gave him a tight one-armed squeeze and pulled back. “I said med-kit, not the whole damn hospital.” Alphy playfully teased the doctor.
“I have a reason. I’ll tell you about it later, but it never hurts to be prepared for anything.”
Gale lightly laughed at the doctor’s casual comment. Alphy tugged lightly on her hand and brought her forward. “This is my mate, Gale Brooks. Honey-bear, this is Slate, Kace, and Seamus, but everyone calls him Sea or Sea-man.”
“Or you can be like his brother, Ryker, and call him Sea-salt,” added Kace.
Gale nodded her head and smiled. “Nice to meet you.”
Alphy looked to Seamus. “Her brother is Paul, and he’s in Betty’s room right now. You can check him out, and the rest of the stuff will have to be temporarily set up in the apartment over the garage. Let’s get this thing unloaded and get to bed. We can catch up tomorrow.”
“Of course you want to get to bed,” drawled Kace, which got him a growl from Alphy. Kace chuckled and walked to the back of the truck. She heard the sound of the metal latch being opened and the roll of the door being lifted up.
Gale looked around and saw everyone, including her mother, was standing on the porch. They started walking down the steps and headed to the back of the truck where Alphy led her to at the same time. He let go of her hand and handed a couple of bags to her, took a large box himself, and looked to Seamus. Seamus grabbed some boxes and started sounding off instructions about what he wanted immediately and what could be placed in the apartment.
Gale’s bags were what he wanted, so she led him into the house and to the room her brother was in. Her brother was actually awake and looking freshly bathed. Her mother and stepfather usually helped with that. His ribs were what hindered him more than his arms, but he couldn’t do much on his own.
Gale put the bags down on the top of a dresser and walked over to her brother. “Hey there, Paul, it’s good to see you awake. This is Dr. Seamus … uh—” She looked at the doctor, as she hadn’t gotten his last name.
“Hi, Paul, I’m Dr. Seamus Rossi, but you can call me Sea. I’d like to look you over, if that’s ok.” Seamus looked as if he would offer Paul a hand but could see both arms in splints.
When Paul nodded, Seamus smiled warmly. “Good.” He turned and grabbed some bags and told everyone to wait outside the room, with the exception of the parents. Gale and the others left to help continue offloading the truck.
There were some big pieces of equipment that took teamwork from the men to lift and maneuver to the upstairs apartment. She had to be careful not to watch the extreme working muscles on her mate or she would undoubtedly get turned on, and if her mate smelled it, he would lose concentration. She smiled to herself at how much pleasure it caused to have that kind of power over him.
It was two in the morning by the time everyone was done and they were able to head to bed. Gale’s body ached, and she didn’t remember her head hitting her pillow.
When everyone woke, late the next morning, they gathered around the table eating. The men had been laughing and catching up when they heard a car pull up. Everyone quieted and headed to the front door.
A wiry, bright redheaded man jumped out of the passenger door and raced to Seamus and threw his arms around him. They embraced.
“Hey, little brother,” the doctor laughed.
“Pff, little? Like by two minutes.” The redhead sounded indignant.
Another man exited the driver’s side. He was dark Hispanic skinned with short black hair and had a very short, kind of scruffy well-trimmed, beard and mustache. He walked over and extended his hand to Alphy. “Alphy, good to see you again.”
“Good to have you here, thank you for coming.”
Another car drove up and parked on the other side of the first car. An athleticly built light skinned African-American man stepped out of the passenger side, and a man as tall as Alphy, with a body-builder physique, stepped out of the driver’s side.
Alphy embraced the smaller man first as he arrived first, then turned to the larger man and gave him a full on hug. He turned to everyone who gathered on the porch. “Guys, this is my mate, Gale. My great-aunt Betty.” Betty waved her spatula as she was introduced. “Those are Gale’s parents, Tom and Connie, and my sister and brother, Havana and Reese.” Alphy turned to his newly arrived friends. He started with the largest with the body-builder body. “That’s Enzo.” He pointed to the man who had come with Enzo. “Phoenix, but we all call him ‘Nix’. That’s Matteo,” he pointed at the darker skinned Hispanic looking man, then turned to the wiry red-head, “and Sea’s twin brother, Ryker.”
Betty pointed her spatula at Alphy. “Just you remember what I told you, Alpha.” She emphasized his title, than turned and walked back inside.
Alphy grabbed Gale’s hand. “Let’s go inside and eat some breakfast before we get down to why we are all here.”
Breakfast had been loud moments before, but now it was nearly more than Gale could bear. She didn’t know anyone and felt very uncomfortable around them. She was a stranger in the middle of a large family. It gave her a claustrophobic feeling, and she felt ready to scream. Gale decided to give herself a reason to separate from the group, so she gathered some scrambled eggs and orange juice and took them to her brother.
Knocking lightly on the door, she only waited for a moment before opening it up. Inside, her brother was sitting up against the headboard, watching a movie on a laptop. He looked up as she entered and smiled.
“Hey, big guy, thought you would like something to eat.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Gale put the items on a dresser and helped him sit up further. He flinched from the discomfort but succeeded. Placing a bed table over his legs, she transferred the plate and glass over. He insisted on trying to feed himself, so she just put the fork next to the plate and sat in a chair next to him.
He dove in and hummed. “So who are you running away from?”
Gale shrugged one shoulder. “Alphy’s buddies. They’re all big and loud, and I just felt crowded.”
He slowed his food for a moment and pondered her, then swallowed and asked, “Mom says he’s your mate. How you taking it? Is he good to you? Has he even claimed you yet?”
Gale was slouched on the chair, and she looked down at her hands. “Yeah, he’s the hottest man on the planet, and I can’t seem to get enough of him.” She rubbed her neck where he’d marked her, multiple times. “If you ever get a chance to get a mating bite, don’t pass it up.” She blew out a long breath.
“That good, huh?”
She glanced up at him but was too embarrassed to keep eye contact. “Yeah, nothing ever like it.”
“So why’re you in here instead of out there with him?”
“I’d like to know the same thing.” A familiar deep voice behind her startled her. She looked back to see Alphy slowly open the door wider. He didn’t sound angry or look it even, but Gale suddenly felt like she’d just gotten caught doing something she shouldn’t. She’d been stressed so much these past few weeks that she was getting tired of fighting her tears. She turned back around and leaned back in her chair. She didn’t know how to answer him and didn’t want to have to battle her emotions. She kept her eyes on her hands as she picked at some non-existent lint on the bottom of her shirt.
Darkness shadowed her as he came around the chair and squatted down in front of her. He put his hands on hers, causing her tummy to flip. Stupid stomach.
“Look at me, honey-bear.” His voice was gentle, and caring even.
Gale couldn’t fight it any longer, and her face scrunched up as she lost her battle with her emotions. She didn’t know why she felt like she was sad. It wasn’t l
ogical; her emotions just wouldn’t get under control.
Alphy knelt in front of her and took her into his arms. She started to calm, but he didn’t let her go. He was making soothing sounds and stroking her hair. She felt him press a kiss on her temple. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I really don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
Alphy leaned back and looked her in the face as she wiped away her tears. “You’ve been through a lot of stress these past few weeks. Life is a bit out-of-control for you right now, and you are perfectly normal. Everything will be all right.”
Alphy leaned in and held her in his arms again. She felt so embarrassed over her breakdown, but in his arms, she began to relax. She took in a deep breath that filled her lungs with his spicy scent, then let it out slowly, relaxing further. She’d never really understood her stepdad’s influence on her mother, but now she was getting the idea. There was something to this mating thing, and she liked it.
Alphy was rubbing her back when a throat cleared. She looked over Alphy’s shoulder at her brother, who had finished all the eggs on his plate, and the entire glass of juice was finished off. She pulled back and tried to get up, but Alphy wouldn’t let her. He stood up and scooped her up in his arms. She gave a slight shriek and wrapped her arms around his neck to try to hold on.
She looked into his face, and he had a pleased with himself expression. “This is more like it. I think I’ll carry you around more often. Having you in my arms feels right.”
“Then you can take her into the living room and I’ll assist her brother.”
Gale was still too alarmed over being carried to be startled by the sound of Seamus showing up. She felt she was much too heavy to be picked up, but Alphy carried her like she weighed nothing. She glanced over to see the doctor move by them to stand next to Paul. He picked up the food table and placed it on the dresser and started to help her brother up. She didn’t get to see any more as Alphy did indeed carry her out into the living room. She gasped and buried her face in his neck.
Alphy sat down in a thick cushioned leather chair. He rested her on his lap but didn’t let her go. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her to secure her in place. Around them sat the entire group. Her parents were sitting the same way in another chair nearby with the tots playing in the middle of the floor. After several minutes, Paul came walking in slowly with assistance from Seamus. The doctor set Paul on a cushioned suede love seat, tucked a blanket and some pillows around him, and then sat down next to him.
Ryker clapped his hands together and rubbed them with excitement. “The first pack meeting is now in session. This is sooo exciting!”
Gale sat quietly as Alphy began to speak.
Chapter Eight
Alphy understood his little mate was struggling with her emotions. Now that they weren’t on the run anymore, he knew her brain was trying to process several weeks of hell. He’d been through it, he’d seen others go through it, and he meant it when he told her it was all normal.
His bear relaxed contentedly in his mind, completely happy with holding her. He looked around at his friends as Paul was being brought in and situated. He chuffed with amusement at Ryker’s excitement. Ryker and his brother were so different, it was a wonder they were actually twins.
“First, let me say again, thank you for coming. All of you came, most of you without an explanation, and so quickly. That means a lot to me.” The men stayed pretty quiet, except for Ryker, who wiggled and bounced in his seat and gave him two thumbs up and a wide smile. Alphy was surprised the eager vampire didn’t say anything.
“I’ve been offered, and have accepted, rights to be alpha in this territory. This is now our home.” He indicated both himself and his mate. “I’ve officially offered pack membership to Tom and his family, and they have accepted. Now I’m officially offering the same to all of you. You’re my family, and despite whatever your answers are, you will still have an open door here. You will always be welcome.”
Ryker quickly raised his hand, and Alphy raised his brow. “Yes, Rye?”
“I’m officially accepting.” Ryker bounced a little bit in his seat.
“I accept, too.”
Alphy nodded his head to Seamus. He had been hoping he would join, too.
His heart swelled as each of his friends, whom he considered family, accepted. They had bonded at different times in their lives, and even though they had, at one time or other, gone different ways, they were always staying in touch, supporting each other. Whenever they could, they would group back up for work or personal reasons. He didn’t know for sure if everyone was in a position in their life to accept just yet, so he hadn’t expected an immediate answer, so to hear every one of them give their acceptance without hesitation even, truly touched his heart. He really did feel like fate had blessed him.
Ryker raised his hand again. Alphy would have wondered how old Ryker really was, but knew his friend could get a bit dramatic when he got really excited about something.
“Yes, Ryker?”
“Oo-oo, so, who gets what rank? And how does the housing thing work?”
“Well, good questions, let’s start with rank. I have offered beta to Enzo.”
Enzo nodded. “And I have accepted.” He gave a proud smile, and around the room the others gave their approving congratulations.
Alphy continued, “I would like to offer Slate and Matteo, both, enforcer positions. We can have a challenge later to decide who has the higher rank.”
Both men agreed.
Ryker commented cheerfully, “That would be an epic match to watch! Can we have that right after the meeting?”
Several others agreed.
“Maybe,” Alphy answered, then added, “I would like to have Kace, Nix, and Ryker as trackers.”
Everyone was surprised he had offered a tracker position to Ryker. Even Ryker had a look of shock on his face, and he had gone still. Some of the others obviously questioned his decision to make Ryker a tracker. Alphy knew none of them minded that he was a vampire instead of a shifter. It was because Ryker couldn’t fight a teddy bear to save his life, even with his vampire strength, that they questioned Alphy’s decision. Although he could see where they were concerned, his bear didn’t like being questioned.
He held up a hand and growled loudly. Everyone quieted, but his mate’s startled jump and the scent of fear that wafted from her dampened his irritation. He quickly took a moment to reassure her. “Shh.” He rubbed his hand in a circle on her back. “I would never hurt you, Gale, you are my mate, and I could never hurt you. No matter how mad I get at anyone, or even you, I would never, ever, hurt you.” He whispered into her ear, not so the others couldn’t hear him, because they all could, with the exception of maybe her mother and brother, but as more of a calming tactic. It worked. Gale calmed considerably, and Alphy was able to continue with the meeting.
“I have made my choice,” he stated with authority. “For one thing, Ryker can be taught some self-defense. Hell, most of us have served in the military and have even been Special Forces, so it isn’t like no one is qualified to teach him those skills. Secondly, a tracker isn’t just about scent trails, especially in today’s world of tech. He is an exceptional tracker with skills in electronics.”
“A cyber tracker, I like the sound of that!” chirped Ryker. His eyes were sparkling with the watery emotion Alphy heard in his voice. He watched as Ryker offered some of the others a look that was almost challenging, but really came across as a little kid who’d just won an argument.
Alphy continued. “Thirdly, even though Seamus will hold rank as our pack doctor, I want another vampire in our inner circle. You may have noticed I have given out a lot of ranks for a pack that doesn’t have more than a houseful of people, but I have seen a need out there, others looking for packs that will accept them for their differences. Some are mixed matings that aren’t accepted, some are gay, and some have been abused by an alpha. I want this to be a refuge for them. I want to show them that I’m not playing favorites
to any specific type of paranormal. Ryker is capable of managing security systems, tracking systems, new identities, and loads more, so he is more than capable for a rank.”
He looked over at Ryker, who was actually crying. He saw him sniff and wipe his eyes dry. “Thank you, Alpha, I’ve never had anyone think so much of me before.”
Seamus puffed, “I do, all the time, and I’ve told you over and over again.”
A much more subdued Ryker shrugged. “Yeah, but you’re my brother. No one else ever seemed to believe I could be anything more. Not even our parents. They always thought it was some dumb hobby, only good for booking their vacations.”
Paul raised his hand. Alphy nodded for him to speak. “Uh, this may not be the best time to ask, but, uh, I’m a little stuck with something about vampires. There are vampires?”
Gale was nodding and looking at him with the same look of worry and confusion as Paul had. He heard Connie whisper to Tom, who tried to answer back. Alphy turned to Tom. “You never told them?”
Tom gave him a sheepish look. “Uh, no. There wasn’t a coven close by, and they were already trying so hard to accept their learning about shifters and all the rules and customs that go with shifters, I didn’t want to overwhelm them just yet.”
“So you haven’t told them about any other paranormals either?” Alphy needed to know just what his mate didn’t know. He was an alpha of a pack, and she would need to know what to watch for. He could already tell, though, that they didn’t know anything, because the scent of anxiety from his mate was clogging his senses.
“None.”
Alphy would have smirked at the look Connie gave Tom, but he was too busy trying to calm his own mate who was holding onto him tightly, looking with fear at her brother, who was backing away from Seamus.
“Paul!” Alphy ordered. Paul jumped and looked at him. “They are no less the caring people today than they were yesterday. Get a hold of yourself.” He looked at his mate but spoke to all three humans as he did. “There are other paranormals, but all of them have many false myths and superstitions attached to them.” He gave Gale a look that he hoped gave her the message that what she thought of them mostly wasn’t true. She took some breaths and calmed herself down, so he turned to check on Paul.
